Yellow tap water: rust?

Factual Questions
1

I discovered that yellow water comes out of my kitchen tap for the first, say 3 seconds whenever I turn the water on (after not using it for several hours).

Someone suggested to me that there must be rust in the building’s pipes and that is causing the momentary stream of discolored water. He said that if problem was related to the city’s pipes, the water would stay yellow, therefore, it must be a problem with the building’s pipes.

Does this sound about right? What is involved in fixing this? Is the problem the pipe under my sink? Or will this involved changing pipes in the entire building? (I live in a low-rise apartment building.)

2

Pipe gnomes can’t hold it in forever, you know.

3

LOL!!!

4

gnomes?

Call the water company & ask them. I did once they said they had a pipe split in the hood
& thats why the water is brown. Then they said to run it outside for ten minutes
to clean zee pipes. Yeah, right, were on water rationing.

5

I speak from enormous experience when I say that rust (iron oxide) turns tap water orange and stains everything in sight (including your humble correspondent) but I’m on well water.

If you weren’t on city water I’d say you have sulfur (another fairly common ground water issue. Isn’t doesn’t have that smell, does it?

6

Jonathan, it’s not orange, just sort of yellow. It is reminicent of the water that can sometimes come out after the building turns off the water and then turns in back on.

You know?

There’s air in the pipes and the water sort of shoots out and scares everyone.

Well, I’ve noticed that sometimes that water comes out a bit yellow at the start too. I don’t know how this is related to the current problem, but I’d just wanted to throw that in.

7

You shouldn’t be using it, in my opinon, without calling the water comp. I have very very old
pipes & whenever the water looks like that I call the water comp.

8

Handy,

I’m just had it confirmed that other is my (old) building also have the yellow water problem. However, does the fact that the water is only yellow for a few seconds make it a health danger.

I mean, if the yellow water goes away, then does that mean the rest of the stream of water is okay to drink?

For that matter, are there any cheap commercially available products that can test water purity?

Finally, I use a Brita water filter container. Will take clean the water?

9

Water test kits you can sometimes buy online. I looked for them once but they seem
expensive, but I do remember that Culligan might have free tests.